Trust
by Macx
Summary: moviefic Part 12 in the Imperfection fic line. This picks up on Jazz's remark in 'Empty' that Ratchet offered to do a full system check on Barricade... What he finds is more serious than expected.


TITLE: Trust  
SERIES: Imperfection, part 12  
AUTHOR: Macx  
RATING: PG-13  
DISCLAIMER: None of the characters belong to me, sadly. They are owned by people with a lot more money  
Author's Voice of Warning (aka Author's Note):  
English is not my first language; it's German. This is the best I can do. Any mistakes you find in here, collect them and you might win a prize The spell-checker said everything's okay, but you know how trustworthy those thingies are...  
FEEDBACK: Loved

This picks up on Jazz's remark in 'Empty' that Ratchet offered to do a full system check on Barricade...

Ratchet had treated his share of Autobots and Decepticons, before and throughout the war on Cybertron. He was a medic, so the patient's faction was secondary to his health. Some of his colleagues and many of his friends couldn't understand his dedication to the cause of medicine, but Ratchet stood by his principles. He would never deny anyone help, whoever he was.

The last battle for the Allspark on Earth had left damage with all of them, including himself. Optimus Prime had suffered quite some damage, but nothing too serious. Ironhide and himself had looked scraped and bruised, but the deeper systems had been left unscathed. Bumblebee had been the worst off. Reattaching his legs had been Ratchet's priority.

He had even brought one of their own back to life. It was all in a day's work, so to speak.

When he had offered to check Barricade, he had expected the Decepticon to decline.

He had.

Several times.

The Decepticon's presence among them had given Ratchet a feeling of unease at first. Barricade had been the enemy for too long to just welcome him as if he was an ally now. Well, he was an ally now, but not one that had first been neutral. He had killed Autobots, had destroyed sparks, and he was still a Decepticon. If not for Megatron killing Jazz and betraying Barricade with it, the shock trooper would still be the enemy.

But he wasn't. Optimus had made it clear that he accepted Barricade's defection. Prime had known about the connection to Jazz and Ratchet had been dumbstruck when he had first heard it from Ironhide.

The medic knew about spark sharing and he knew how special it was, but Barricade and Jazz? Well, there had been other partners with more extreme differences, and Jazz wasn't so much different, just… he covered it all better than Barricade, who wore his colors openly.

Barricade hadn't set a foot in the Autobot base since the 'sparrign session' that had been more like an all-out cat fight, and Ratchet hadn't expected him to. Jazz's request to do the medical scan somewhere Barricade felt safe, somewhere neutral, had surprised him. Jazz was one very persistent Autobot and he cared about his companion's health, so finally, after months of cajoling, Barricade had agreed to the scan. He wouldn't come into the Autobot base, but Ratchet didn't need his diagnostic tools to make a first assessment of a patient's health. His own systems were fine-tuned enough.

Barricade was a silent, rather tense patient. He sat on an old cargo container, stiff and wary, while Ratchet ran his system checks.

The results were rather… serious. There was a steady power loss to one of his core systems, something that wouldn't start any alarms until it was almost too late. It was like a cardiac problem with humans. Sometimes even the serious ones slipped by a human's notice until it was too late to help. Add to that a hairline crack in the outer spark casing and Ratchet had every reason to feel worried.

Barricade's optics flared briefly at the diagnosis. Jazz's expression was one of barely hidden shock. Neither had expected something that serious.

"I need to fix it, Barricade, and I can't do it here. You won't feel a change to your systems for now, but it will get worse and when it reaches a certain point, things will get ugly," Ratchet explained. "I can fix the faulty systems and I can clean out the rest while I'm at it."

The Decepticon was aware of it, but he didn't look too happy. It meant going off line completely while in the Autobot base, with the 'enemy' around him.

Ratchet gave him an imploring look. "I'll let Prime know about it. You have my oath as a medic that nothing will happen to you."

The optics narrowed and a slight sneer appeared on the dark features. "You can't guarantee it, Autobot."

"Do you really believe any of us so petty to try and harm you while you're on my operating table?"

"Aside from one Autobot, I trust no one."

"You don't have to give me the trust you place in Jazz. Just trust me to repair you without intentional harm."

Jazz stepped forward, placing a light hand on Barricade's shoulder armor. It was a gesture more telling than anything Ratchet had ever seen between them. Red optics met blue and Jazz smiled grimly.

"I'll shoot Ironhide myself should he interfere," the specialist said calmly.

Barricade had no other choice and he knew it. This would kill him and he was a survivor, he would fight with whatever necessary to stay alive.

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°

Barricade was no fool. As a warrior he knew he had to be in peak condition, no matter where he was and what the circumstances were. When he had first arrived on Mars, energon reserves had been pretty much unlimited. Mars wasn't the same as Earth and they could openly convert what they needed from natural resources. Every Cybertronian's protoform was equipped with the rudimentary means of energon conversion from all kinds of sources.

After their arrival on Earth, fuel had been readily presented in even more variety. Humans used fossil matter to power their own machines, had nuclear matter, natural resources and more. The downside was that the easier something was to get, the easier it was to use it. Like fast food, he mused. It was unhealthy, but it was so easy to achieve a state of sated pleasure.

Barricade had had to turn to such fuel sources more and more after the death of Megatron and the defeat of the Decepticon forces. He had been hiding, recovering from damage, licking his wounds, and whatever he had managed to steal, he had taken. He hadn't been picky. His body had needed fuel to function.

Now he was paying the price. There were deposits and sediment and brittle fuel tubes, suffering from taking in such mediocre, sometimes downright cheap, nourishment.

Jazz's revival and Barricade allying himself with the Autobots had changed nothing in his behavior pattern. He still skulked around gas stations and refineries to steal what he needed. Barricade was loath to turn himself over to the Autobots in his need. He knew Jazz disapproved of his behavior, but it was a matter of trust. And he wouldn't take alms out of pity, even though his partner had managed to convince Barricade once to take in refined energon. It had been an incredible taste.

Still… he wouldn't turn to Optimus Prime and beg.

Jazz called it misplaced pride and Barricade's useless stubbornness.

Barricade called it caution.

That his systems complained sometimes was nothing new either. He usually spent a few hours parked in a safe spot, running maintenance, but it wasn't a solution. A medic could do so much more, but the only medic on this planet was an Autobot. Barricade wasn't sure he would have trusted a Decepticon medic either, though his own faction placed value on keeping their warriors in perfect fighting shape.

::Cade?::

He cursed softly to himself. He hadn't even been aware of Jazz coming closer through their connection.

::What?:: he snapped.

::Wow, grouchy bot! Calm down, okay? You'll be fine::

He wasn't so sure of that. While Optimus Prime was an honorable leader of his faction, Barricade wouldn't trust Ironhide for a nano second. The weapons specialist might take the chance to offline him for good.

::Barricade::

Again, Jazz came closer, surrounding him, a calming presence in the face of an emotional thunder storm.

::Nothing will happen:: the Autobot insisted. ::Nothing::

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°

Jazz had insisted on staying throughout the repair. Ratchet had agreed, as long as Jazz didn't get in his way. The silver Autobot had given him his word not to interfere. He had accompanied Barricade into the base, both in vehicle mode, and none of the others had been present – as by Prime's orders. Ironhide had growled and muttered to himself, but he and Captain Lennox had driven off without much fuss after that. Bumblebee had only nodded and decided to stay with Sam until he was called back.

Only Prime was present and he looked at the smaller mechanoid as Barricade transformed. "Welcome to the Autobot base, Barricade," he said, sounding almost formal.

Red optics darted cautiously around.

"There is no one here but you, Jazz, Ratchet and me."

Barricade nodded, still radiating a lot of tension. His claws flexed a little, but he showed no visible weapons. Jazz was at his side, looking just as tense, but it was a different kind of tension. This was more worry than anything else.

Optimus had known about Barricade's connection to Jazz ever since it had happened such a long time ago. He had been surprised, and that was a mild word for it. But like all of his kind he knew how rare and how precious such a connection was. Not all sparks had a resonating other half and the war had killed too many on both sides. Most would never be as lucky as Jazz had been in finding this one particular resonance.

That Barricade had turned to Megatron's cause had worried Prime in the beginning. Jazz had become a liability. Only when his First Lieutenant had told him that whatever Barricade did, it would never harm his partner had Optimus felt a sliver of relief. He didn't doubt the word of the black mechanoid, even though he had become a Decepticon, because spark bonds were so intimate and complete. Lies were impossible on that level. Deception even less.

Now Barricade had become an ally and Jazz's moods were brighter. There was a happiness to the silver Autobot that was sometimes almost infectious. Jazz was working hard on having Barricade accepted, and to have Barricade accept the alliance in turn. That he now required serious medical help had hit Prime's First Lieutenant hard.

As both mechanoids walked into the medical area, Prime met Ratchet's optics.

"Do you need anything, Ratchet?" he asked calmly.

"For you to keep Ironhide away. Barricade is ready to snap at the slightest move anyway. What I'm going to do requires him to go into complete stasis lock, to trust me with his spark, and I don't need him to look over his shoulder all the time. He can fight me even in stasis lock and I don't need that complication."

Optimus nodded. "Ironhide has specific orders only to return when I tell him to. Will promised to do whatever it takes to keep Ironhide from coming closer than within twenty miles."  
Ratchet smiled briefly, then followed his patient. The next hours would be difficult.

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°

Ironhide had left the Autobot base under protest and hadn't stopped complaining and grumbling until well on the way to the coast. Captain Will Lennox had let him get it out of his systems, so to speak, listening with half an ear and grunting in reply whenever Ironhide demanded to know if he didn't agree to his risk assessment of Barricade inside their base.

The rant was winding down around Monterey and Lennox sighed in relief.

"You done?" he asked, trying not to sound annoyed.

"Not by a long shot when it comes to Decepticon scum!" was the growl.

"Barricade's no longer a Decepticon."

It was an age-old argument.

"Once a Con, always a Con!"

Yes, really old.

While Will had had his run-ins with Decepticons, had lost men in Qatar to Blackout and Scorponok, later to Starscream, Megatron and the others, he could see the difference between allies and enemies clearly. Ironhide argued he had no idea of their war, of the losses, but Lennox had pointed out wars among humankind. Not just recent ones, but ancient battles, too. Today, different races accepted each other, as friends and allies, even as family.

But there was no winning an argument against Ironhide. He was one of the oldest Autobots and the one with the worst experience in war, it seemed, and he hated Decepticons with a passion.

At least he gave Barricade the benefit of a doubt sometimes because of Jazz. There was no arguing with that connection.

They stopped at a small restaurant for a quick lunch and Will enjoyed the relative calm and quiet of the ocean front setting. The food was very good and he splurged by getting dessert and coffee afterwards. Ironhide hadn't said a word since he had parked himself in the back of the parking lot.

Then they were on their way again to a remote beach that was almost inaccessible to normal vehicles and saw no visitors even on sunny days, aside from alone hiker or two. Will lay back in the sun and soaked up the warmth.

Nice. Really nice. The sound of the surf had a lulling effect.

Ironhide sat next to him, gazing out over the ocean, watching the waves crash into the sharp outcroppings of rock.

"Any word?" Will asked after a while.

"No," came the rumble.

Ow, that sounded like Ironhide was almost tearing a vocal processor.

"Relax, big guy. Or don't you think Optimus made the right decision?"

Blue optics narrowed and glared. Lennox gave the much larger mechanoid a disarming smile. Ironhide looked like he wanted to say something, then he just turned away. Will shrugged and lay back again, deciding to enjoy the day off.

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°

Jazz watched every move Ratchet made and if that made the medic nervous, he didn't say or show it. He had taken off Barricade's armor and removed whatever lay between him and the spark casing. Barricade had gone into stasis lock, but Ratchet had seen the reluctance in the red optics. He understood the feeling.

Would he trust a Decepticon medic not to kill or disable him permanently while under?  
As he scanned the fine crack in the casing and the surrounding systems, he made last adjustments to his instruments, then began to close the dangerous injury.

Jazz was silent, his spark aching in sympathy for his partner and he carefully felt along the bond between them. Barricade was in stasis, which meant there was no consciousness to respond to his approach, but he felt better this close than just looking in from the outside.

::Nothing will happen to you:: he murmured, repeating his earlier words, even if his partner couldn't hear him. ::You'll be fine'::

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°

Ratchet had found several glitches throughout his systems checks and had reworked them into functional subroutines once more. He had replaced old muscle cables that showed wear and tear from neglect, and had gone over almost every system while Barricade was on his examination table. There was a lot that told the medic that the former Decepticon had suffered extensive damage in the last months and repaired it himself. Up until the battle for the Allspark he had been in peak condition, probably maintained in part by Frenzy, but afterwards he had had to work with his own basic knowledge and what fuel he had been able to steal from the humans. His energon pump had oily deposits from bad fuel and he cleaned that out.

"He should have come in earlier," Ratchet remarked.

"I know," was Jazz's quiet reply. "It's a matter of trust."

Ratchet nodded and reconnected another abused circuit he had replaced.

"He has to stay in stasis for a little while longer," the medic went on. "His circuits need time to go back online slowly. I'm giving him an energon feed and simultaneously start a cleaning program. I'm flushing all the old lubricants and energon deposits out of his system."

"Thanks, Ratchet."

The other Autobot smiled tightly. "You're welcome."

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°

Barricade woke to the warm presence of another spark close to him. Rudimentary systems hummed softly as they powered up. He turned to the familiar softness.

::Hey. Awake?:: Jazz asked, sounding lazy and totally at ease.

Barricade couldn't but mirror that feeling. If Jazz was relaxed there was no danger. Memories of where he was teased him, but he chose to ignore them for the moment, savoring the privacy and the utter comfort of being with his partner.

::Yes:. He answered.

::How do you feel?::

He checked his systems. ::Surprisingly good::

The other spark nudged him a little. ::Ratchet's good::

::For an Autobot::

Jazz chuckled. ::Be a nice boy, Cade, and say thank you to Uncle Ratchet::

::Definitely too long on this planet:: Barricade grumbled.

Their sparks briefly intermingled, then Jazz pulled back. ::Time to come back and let Ratchet check out your pretty new and shining systems:: he teased.

Barricade sent what could double as a deadly glare, but it was only mostly annoyance. He rechecked his systems, then brought the rest of them online. Sight and sound returned, as did sensation to his sensors along his armor.

"Stay where you are, Barricade," a voice he identified as Ratchet's ordered before he could move a muscle cable. "I need to run system checks."

While the Decepticon in him bristled at the order from an Autobot, another told him that this Autobot was a medic who had just fiddled around with his systems. He should follow that order until he knew what had changed.

::Good boy:: Jazz whispered, laughing.

::Oh shut up, Autobot!:: he snapped.

While Ratchet did whatever he was doing, Barricade let his own programs run over the changes. He was astounded to notice that all routines were running at peak efficiency. Ratchet had not only fixed a serious problem but also cleaned out whatever energon deposits there had been, had replaced old cables, wiring and tubes, had removed all the old fuel remnants and infused new energon, and he had exchanged several old parts for brand new ones.

Barricade looked at the medic as Ratchet busily checked everything, wondering why.

::Because he cares:: Jazz murmured, still very close and using their electronic connection.

::I'm not one of you::

::You are enough one of us for him to matter::

Barricade mentally shook his head at his partner's wording.

::You're an ally, Cade. And you are my partner, sharing my spark. He wouldn't let you suffer. I wouldn't let him let you suffer:: The last was said with a trickle of dark menace.

"Good as new," Ratchet interrupted his reply. "Mostly new in some places." There was a smile in the words. "Take it easy on the systems for the next few days. If anything hiccups, and I mean anything, come to me."

Barricade looked into the stern optics. "Why should I, Autobot?" he wanted to know.

Ratchet almost sighed. "Because I'll sic Ironhide on you if you break down out of false pride, Barricade," he replied, voice filling with anger. "You're our ally and your health is my responsibility."

Barricade's optics narrowed, but a silver hand clamping down on his shoulder had him swallow his nasty reply.

"Leave it, Cade. Just accept it."

::Not a word:: Jazz warned, using the connection again. ::You can yell and snarl and growl and bitch when we're out of here. Ratchet saved your life. Be nice::

"I'm not nice," Barricade hissed out loud and slid off the table, glaring angrily at his partner. Then he stalked out of the medical area.

Jazz sighed, shooting Ratchet an apologetic look. The other mech just chuckled.

"I take that as a 'thank you'. Go after him and keep him from overtaxing his systems."

"Ratch… thanks. For everything."

"You're welcome. I know what this means to you. I also know what it means to him."

Jazz nodded once, then left.

Ratchet felt a smile cross his lips. Yes, he knew what Barricade meant to Jazz, what his health and survival meant. He also knew never to expect a word of thanks from the former Decepticon. He might have defected from Megatron's cause, but he was still the same as he had been before. His voice box would probably break beyond repair if he had to thank an Autobot.

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°

Barricade knew he owed Ratchet his life, but there was a blockade inside him that stopped him from approaching the Autbot and expressing his gratitude. He had left the base and transformed, seeking a solitary spot at the far end of the former Airforce grounds. Jazz was with him, a silent, welcome presence, and they didn't need to talk about anything that had happened. That was the good thing about Jazz: he wouldn't talk him to death.

They were parked close together, Jazz's bumper pushing gently into Barricade's fender.

As the sun set and the temperatures dropped, Barricade felt his tension drain a little more. Ironhide hadn't returned yet and none of the other Autobots had made themselves a nuisance. He wouldn't stay at the base; he didn't feel well here. But he would follow Jazz's request to refuel here once in a while, as well as get his filters cleaned out from fuel deposits.

It was about the only compromise he was willing to make.

And it was all Jazz ever asked.


End file.
